Green Tea BlogAll you need to know about Green Tea

Except for water, Green Tea is the most widely consumed drink in the world. Green tea is a staple in the diets of many Asian families around the world and Green tea is a part of Japanese and Chinese cultures. Green tea is the most popular tea in China, and while there are many varieties, green teas are favored because of their fresh and subtle taste. One difference between Japanese and Chinese tea is that Japanese green tea is often steam-dried rather than oven-dried. The green tea is grown in an area near the border of the Fujian and Zhejiang provinces. The best Japanese green tea is said to be that from the Uji region of Kyoto. Green tea is dried, but not fermented.

Scientific studies show that green tea is good for you. Two studies in China, where green tea is a mainstay of the diet, resulted in promising findings. The only negative side effect reported from drinking green tea is insomnia because it contains caffeine. Green tea is known for its high content of vitamins and minerals. Green tea is a natural antioxidant and is produced from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis, or tea plant. Green tea is made from unfermented leaves and is reputed to contain the highest concentration of polyphenols, chemicals that act as powerful antioxidants. Theamine in green tea is touted for its tranquilizing effect on the brain, and makes green tea a better choice than the coffee bean. A study, began in 1994, included 40,530 adults (age 40 to 79 years) in northeastern Japan, where green tea is widely consumed.

The study confirmed Green tea is good for weight loss and is great for your skin. Low in caffeine, high in antioxidants and vitamin C, green tea is unfermented. Green Tea is high in polyphenols with potent antioxidant and anti-cancer support properties. With tastes that are light and refreshing, green tea is the perfect addition to any diet. Although you can buy green tea that has been packaged in tea bags, green tea is best when it is brewed from the whole leaf.

For many centuries, green tea has been regarded as the drink of choice, not just for plain drinking, but also as herbal medicine, treatment for illnesses and for weight loss. Below are the different green tea extract benefit and the reasons why the beverage has enjoyed such reputation for over a long period time.

Several studies were done over the last few years to find out the component in green tea that makes it a powerful health drink. Researchers have discovered that the beneficial effects of green tea are attributed to the polyphenols, particularly the catechins, which make up 30 percent of the dry weight of green tea leaves.

Recent studies have shown that catechins are instrumental in one significant green tea extract benefit – weight loss promotion. Catechins in green tea extract affect metabolism in a number of ways: suppressing appetite, inhibiting intestinal lipases, decreasing fat absorption, increasing fat excretion, increasing uncoupling proteins, accelerating thermogenesis, and decreasing lipogenic enzymes. Due to its potential therapeutic advantages and its role in the promotion of weight loss, green tea extract has now become the subject of global studies.

Numerous studies suggest that one green tea extract benefit is its ability to increase metabolism and help burn fat more effectively. A study made a confirmation that when green tea and caffeine are combined, there is significant improvement in the efforts of a moderately obese individual who is trying to lose weight and maintain it. Several researchers believe that catechins are the main causes of the fat-burning effect of the herb.

According to one researcher, there are only a couple of ways to attain weight loss – reduce energy intake or increase energy expenditure. Apparently, the compounds found in green tea are capable of giving a boost to the body’s normal metabolism rate, thereby providing a green tea extract benefit, particularly the weight loss advantage.

Other studies also say that an important body process involving losing weight is enhanced with the help of green tea. Because of the caffeine in green tea and green tea itself, the process of thermogenesis, which is also referred to as increased caloric expenditure, is said to increase by 28 percent to 77 percent, depending on dose. Caffeine alone did not yield significant results. One study has shown that the thermogenic effect caused by green tea extract may be a result of an interaction between its high concentrations of catechin-polyphenols together with caffeine.

A study on bladder cancer cell lines also outlined one more green tea extract benefit, which involves the anti-cancer properties of green tea. The study revealed that green tea extract shows promise in beating cancer. For the first time, the study was able to determine that green tea indeed targets cancer cells and leaves the healthy, normal cells alone. It has been shown in the study that the green tea extract benefit of destroying cancer cells inhibited the growth of an independent blood supply, which cancers develop so they can grow and spread. In the study, it was observed that green tea extract breaks up a process that’s important in permitting bladder cancer to invade and spread to different parts of the body.

Green tea’s ability to fight cancer is even more potent and varied than scientists suspected, say researchers who have discovered that chemicals in green tea shut down one of the key molecules that tobacco relies upon to cause cancer. It’s a find that could help explain why people who drink green tea are less likely to develop cancer. The finding by scientists at the University of Rochester’s Environmental Health Science Center appears in the July 21 issue of Chemical Research in Toxicology, published by the American Chemical Society.

Graduate students and medical doctors set out to measure the effects of the chemicals found in green tea on a molecule known as the aryl hydrocarbon (AH) receptor, a molecule that frequently plays a role in turning on genes that are oftentimes harmful. Gasiewicz has previously shown how both tobacco smoke and dioxin manipulate the molecule – a favorite target of toxic substances – to cause havoc within the body.

The team isolated the chemicals that make up green tea and found two that inhibit AH activity. The two substances, epigallocatechingallate (EGCG) and epigallocatechin (EGC), are close molecular cousins to other flavonoids found in broccoli, cabbage, grapes and red wine that are known to help prevent cancer.

While green tea has been much-ballyhooed for its anti-cancer effects as well as other purported abilities such as preventing rheumatoid arthritis and lowering cholesterol, just how the substance works has been a mystery. Scientists do know that green tea contains chemicals that are anti-oxidants and quench harmful molecules. But its effects on the AH receptor have not been thoroughly evaluated until now.

Studies show that the compounds in green tea act through many different pathways. Green tea may work differently than what previous findings thought on its anti-cancer effectiveness.

It showed that the chemicals shut down the AH receptor in cancerous mouse cells, and early results indicate the same is true in human cells as well.

In the laboratory the AH-inhibiting effects of green tea become evident when EGCG and EGC reach levels typical of those found in a cup of green tea. But the scientists say that how green tea is metabolized by the body is crucial to its effectiveness, and that results in the laboratory don’t necessarily translate directly to the dinner table.

Today we are unsure if drinking the amount of green tea that a person normally drinks would make a difference, but the work is giving insight into how the proteins work. There are a lot of differences between various kinds of green tea, so a lot more research is needed.

When age catches up and your skin starts sagging, no beauty therapy can come to your aid. You lose your self esteem and draw flak from your boss. Beauty has its share of goodness, even a grave mistake is easily forgiven when you are in the prime of your age. You cut a sorry figure wherever you go. However, oriental wisdom has discovered a magic potion that can curb aging.

Green tea, the wonder drug of this age is endowed with properties that can curb the ageing process. In china they have long identified the beneficial aspects of this drink. Now in the west it is fast catching up. Extracted from the Camellia Sinensis plant, an evergreen shrub, green tea undergoes minimal oxidation. Green tea made from unfermented leaves have highly concentrated anti-oxidants called polyphenols. Anti-oxidants in green tea fight free radicals in the body. Free radicals occur naturally in the body.

Environmental toxins like ultraviolet rays from the sun, smoking and radiation also release free radicals. These free radicals promote aging and cause cancer and heart diseases. The anti-oxidants in green tea can neutralize these free radicals and even reduce the damage they have done.

The super antioxidant power in green tea stimulates the immune system and slows down the aging process. When you are exhausted, the immune system is overworked and you are vulnerable to attack from viral and bacterial infection. So it is very important to protect the immune system from exhaustion to prevent diseases like cancer, cardiovascular diseases and diabetes.

Polyphenols in green tea can kill cancerous cells and curb their progression. In Japan people who suffer from cancer are less as they consume green tea every day. Be it a bladder cancer, stomach, breast or ovarian the polyphenols in green tea can prevent it from spreading. As green tea helps to regulate glucose in the body it can also be given to people who suffer from type 1 diabetes. Alcohol drinkers can heave a sigh of relief for green tea can protect your liver from total damage. Now booze around with your regular green tea.

The ever expanding waistline giving you sleepless nights? Just take Green tea pills and forget about it. No, it is not a joke. Green tea extracted from a shrub has the antioxidant polyphenol with thermogenic properties. It can burn those extra calories. No needs to go for sit-ups, no need for dieting; the magic of green tea pills burns away the fat without causing any side effects. Green tea can stimulate the bodies metabolism.

Now green tea comes in the form of gums and pills. If you have difficulty in sipping or don’t like the flavor, then it is easy to swallow the pill. As green tea is processed by drying without fermenting the beneficial chemicals are never lost. But anything in overdose can do you harm. Caffeine content in green tea can be a cause for concern. Vomiting, nausea, diarrhea, headaches, and loss of appetite may result from overdose of caffeine. Decaffeination can to a great extent avert the side effects of drinking green tea.

Hannah, a mother of two from Poughkeepsie, asked us the following question:

Is Green Tea safe for children?

Now, research tells us that there really is no direct answer to this question, so it is still best to decide based on your own disgression. First and foremost, the only substance that seems to be preventing anyone from giving green tea to kids is caffeine, but then again, caffeine is found in most sodas.

We have scoured the internet for opinions and we have compiled the best ones below. Some, or a combination of quoted opinions below may give you the answer to what you’re looking for.

Actually, they say now that instead of using a.d.d. medication, a nice cup of espresso will have the same effect on kids, without the cost, or the chemicals in your childs system. I had tea every morning before school with toast or bread and jam, and my i.q. is very high, I’m a writer, a musician, and a chef, and artist so don’t go by my word –but it certainly didn’t hurt me. — Nancy (Yahoo! Answers)

I say so, in moderation. It beats giving them soda pop. Green tea is a wonderful drink, I drink it a lot. The green tea I use does not have a real high caffeine content. — Jackie Blue (Yahoo! Answers)

If you have young kids, it is advisable for them not to drink tea. This is because tea contains caffeine that may over-stimulate. It also contains tannins that may block nutrients absorption such as protein and fats in children. — amazing-green-tea.com

We therefore conclude that, like everything, giving green tea to children should be done in moderation (at most once a day) and, if your kids are really, really young (below 5 years), it’s best to wait a couple of years.

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Yes, it does. If you’re worried about caffeine, relax. Green tea has half the caffeine of a can of Coke (30-60 mg per serving).

And if you drink green tea you will relax without even trying. Unlike the caffeine in soda and coffee, the caffeine in green tea does not raise your blood pressure. It even has a calming effect.

Caffeine often gets a bad rap. Studies show that our bodies benefit from a moderate intake of caffeine each day. If you’re avoiding caffeine for health reasons you’re actually depriving your body of health benefits.

The best way to get caffeine is in green tea. Don’t add sugar to the green tea because that will dilute the health benefits of the caffeine.

There are benefits to green tea apart from the caffeine, of course. For example, Purdue University conducted a study that showed that green tea has a compound that helps fight cancer cells. Also, if you have rheumatoid arthritis, auto-immune difficulties, high cholesterol, frequent infections and heart disease, green tea has been proven to be effective. It also destroys the bacteria that causes tooth decay. These are just a few of the benefits of green tea. It can even help you lose weight! But I’ll save those wondrous details for another article.

You’re probably wondering: Why green tea instead of other types of tea?

Green tea leaves are steamed whereas black and oolong tea leaves are fermented and the compounds in them are not nearly as effective as a result.

If you’ve avoided green tea because you don’t like the taste let me assure you that there is a huge variety of green tea available. Some are blended with spices, some have an edgier taste, some are almost sweet.

Hannah Graham

ECGC In Green Tea Is Powerful Medicine Against Severe Sepsis

component of green tea could prove the perfect elixir for severe sepsis, an abnormal immune system response to a bacterial infection. In a new laboratory study, Haichao Wang, PhD, of The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, and his colleagues have been studying the therapeutic powers of dozens of Chinese herbal compounds in reversing a fatal immune response that kills 225,000 Americans every year. They found that an ingredient in green tea rescued mice from lethal sepsis — and the findings could pave the way to clinical trials in patients.

Dr. Wang had previously discovered a late mediator of sepsis called HMGB1, a substance expressed in the late stages of lethal sepsis. They wanted to figure out a way to block this substance, which they felt would prevent the lethal sepsis process from moving forward. And it worked.

Scientists worldwide have been stumped by sepsis. Even with the most advanced medical techniques available, half of those who develop sepsis die of the massive assault on the body. Several laboratories at the Feinstein Institute are working on sepsis — both on the basic biological level and in patients.

In the latest study, Dr. Wang’s group gave a substance in green tea called EGCG to mice in the throes of severe sepsis. The dose was equivalent to 10 cups in a human. Survival jumped from 53 percent in those who didn’t receive the green tea substance to 82 percent in those who did. “Clinically, even if we could save five percent of patients, that would be huge,” said Dr. Wang. “In this study, we saved 25 percent more animals with the green tea.” He said that the green tea component, EGCG, is readily available.

There have been more than 100 papers focusing on this natural substance and its anti-cancer benefits. “This compound prevents HMGB1 from being released by immune cells and it also prevents it from activating immune cells to produce more cytokines,” he said. Cytokines are produced by immune cells and act as weapons to defend the body against invaders. “We are hoping to stimulate future interest in clinical studies,” said Dr. Wang, who worked on the study in collaboration with Wei Li, PhD, Andrew Sama, MD, chairman of emergency medicine at North Shore University Hospital, and other Feinstein investigators.

The study was published in the Public Library of Science, or PLoS-One.

For those who seek to lose weight, most have tried nearly everything out there. So when something pops up in the media about a product to help aid in weight loss, many ears perk up. It has long been known in the eastern hemisphere that green tea and oolong tea, also referred to as wulong tea, are good for our health and can keep weight at a healthy level. For us Americans, we are a little behind the eight ball when it comes to understanding what is healthy for us in terms of food and drink. Places like Japan and China have known about the benefits of green tea, oolong tea and others teas for many centuries, so why do we feel the need to have study after study done to prove to us that tea is healthy? Shouldn’t we just take their word (and experience) for it?

Well, for those who need scientific data before trying something, here is a quick summary of a study that was published in the Journal of Medical Investigation in August, 2003 concerning the difference between green tea and oolong tea with regards to weight loss. The study was done with 11 Japanese women who drank either water, green matcha tea, or oolong tea after meals. After a period of time, data showed that oolong tea increased metabolism by 10%, green tea increased metabolism by 4 % and water not at all. This means that drinking oolong tea or green tea after a meal will cause your body to burn more calories, thereby aiding in weight loss.

Interestingly, oolong tea was shown to have half the amount of EGCG, the cancer fighting compound, than what is found in green tea. So, it seems that both teas have their specific strengths in keeping the body healthy. Both green tea and oolong tea have been extensively reported on in the media regarding the benefits of drinking these to help you lose weight, so I guess it is just a matter of taste preference. Heck, why not drink both? Your body will surely benefit.

Two to three cups of green tea per day (for a total of 240 to 320 mg polyphenols) is recommended. It is best to get green tea antioxidants from its natural form, green tea itself. But if you don’t like the flavor, or don’t have the time, and would like to make sure your body is benefiting from green tea antioxidants you may want to try Green Tea Extracts or Green Tea Drops. Green Tea Plus is a heavily concentrated form of green tea. It has an antioxidant value of 7800 units. Green Tea Plus has added trace minerals to aid in regular body functions. It can be added to any beverage, even water.